Bruno Betzel

Who was Bruno Betzel?

Christian Frederick Albert John Henry David "Bruno" Betzel was an American infielder in Major League Baseball and a longtime manager at the minor league level. In 26 years as a minor league skipper, between the years of 1927 and 1956, Betzel compiled a record of 1,887 victories and 1,892 losses for a winning percentage of .499.

Born in Chattanooga, Ohio, a small town in Mercer County on the Indiana border, Betzel played his entire, five-year major league career for the St. Louis Cardinals, between 1914 and 1918. A right-handed batter and thrower, he appeared in 448 games and batted .231 with 333 hits, including 37 doubles, 25 triples, two home runs and 94 runs batted in. He was the Redbirds' regular third baseman in 1915 and second baseman in 1916.

An old-time ballplayer who roomed with Rogers Hornsby in his tenure with the Cardinals, Betzel once beaned Ty Cobb with an infield ground ball that set off a rare brawl in spring training. In spite of his business-like, win at all costs baseball life, he was known to share what he hunted and fished for with orphanages near his home.